EXPRESS: Onboarding Salespeople: Socialization Approaches

The effective training of salespeople is crucial to a firm’s success; there is arguably no more critical type of training than a salesperson’s onboarding. In this study, the authors leverage a natural field experiment in which a firm’s newly hired salespeople can undergo onboarding through either a decentralized program or a centralized program to examine the relative impact of each program. Drawing on organizational socialization theory, the authors consider whether an onboarding program that incorporates both individualized and institutionalized socialization tactics (the decentralized program) can develop salespeople into higher performers by encouraging them to take a more innovative and adaptive approach to different facets of the sales role. The findings reveal that salespeople who underwent the decentralized program achieved approximately 23.5% higher sales performance than those who underwent the centralized program. The performance benefits of the decentralized program were amplified for salespeople whose managers had a narrower span of control. In addition, these performance benefits were appreciable for those salespeople transitioning from another job but negligible for those transitioning from school. A scenario-based experiment enriches the field experiment’s findings by showing evidence of the theorized mechanism underlying the sales performance benefits observed: the fostering of an innovative role orientation.

When Are the Bigger Fish in the Small Pond Better Citizens? A Multilevel Examination of Relative Overqualification in Workgroups

In this study, we extend overqualification research to employees' social context of workgroup membership. Drawing upon social comparison theory and integrating with social exchange theory, we contend that employees' relative overqualification (ROQ, defined as individual overqualification relative to other group members' overqualification perceptions) is associated with their relative standing with their leader (measured as LMXSC, leader–member exchange social comparison), which in turn relates to employees' organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB). Furthermore, we assert that workgroup structural attributes and individual values (leader span of control and power distance orientation) influence the ROQ–LMXSC–OCB relationship. Multilevel modeling using data from 243 employees nested in 36 workgroups suggested patterns of moderated mediation where leader span of control and employee power distance orientation moderate the indirect link between ROQ and OCB through LMXSC. That is, the indirect relationship between ROQ and OCB is stronger in workgroups with a narrow leader span of control and for employees high in power distance orientation. Implications and directions for meso- and group-level research are discussed.

Pembinaan dan Pengawasan Penyelenggaraan Pemerintahan Daerah Otonomi Khusus di Papua

This study aims to analyze the performance of the Directorate of Regional Arrangement, Special Autonomy, and the Regional Autonomy Advisory Council in fostering and supervising the implementation of special autonomy in Papua, analyzing the supporting factors and obstacles to the performance of the guidance and supervision carried out by the directorate as well as analyzing the strategy of guidance and supervision in the administration of local government. Special autonomy in Papua. Descriptive qualitative research design through an inductive approach. Data obtained from observation, documentation, and interviews with key informants were then analyzed using triangulation to analyze supporting and inhibiting factors and strategies, used SWOT Matrix and Litmus Test. Based on the results of data analysis, it is concluded that; (1) the directorate's performance in fostering and supervising the administration of the particular autonomous regional government in Papua has not been optimal; (2) performance supporting factors. Namely, organizational legality, human resources, leadership commitment, inter-institutional linkages, national priorities and access to coordination communication as well as performance inhibiting factors, namely, limiting regulations, limited funding, differences in employee orientation, national disintegration, 'span' of control which is far away, and the commitment between stakeholders is not optimal and; (3) the strategy resulting from this research is the "K5" strategy, namely strengthening in terms of Institutional, Communication, Coordination, HR Quality, and IT Quality. From this conclusion, the researcher provides suggestions, namely restructuring the directorate, preparing guidance and supervision instruments in the implementation of Papua's special autonomy, expanding cooperation networks or partnerships with stakeholders, developing digital-based information systems, facilitating employees to attend training or workshops, and a commitment to realizing the "K5" strategy.

The Aspects of Policy Determination in the Formation of Autonomous Regions in Indonesia

This article examines the aspects that are determined in the formation of autonomous regions in Indonesia. As a country that adheres to the principle of decentralization, the policy of establishing an autonomous region is important and urgent in the context of the welfare of the people. The research method used in this article uses a literature search study. The results of the research are aspects used in the formation of autonomous regions are population criteria, economic capability criteria, regional potential criteria, financial capability criteria, socio-cultural criteria, socio-political criteria, area, defense and security, community welfare level, and span of control.

The Life Cycle of Businesses and Their Internal Organization

We document new stylized facts on the occupational mix of businesses in the United States and how their internal organization evolves over their life cycles. Our main empirical finding is that younger businesses have fewer hierarchical layers and lower span of control than comparable older businesses do. Our results suggest that businesses become simultaneously more hierarchical and increase their managerial span of control over their life cycles. We show that this pattern is not entirely driven by selection or differences in size and is pervasive across cohorts and sectors.

The Robot Revolution: Managerial and Employment Consequences for Firms

As a new general-purpose technology, robots have the potential to radically transform employment and organizations. In contrast to prior studies that predict dramatic employment declines, we find that investments in robotics are associated with increases in total firm employment but decreases in the total number of managers. Similarly, we find that robots are associated with an increase in the span of control for supervisors remaining within the organization. We also provide evidence that robot adoption is not motivated by the desire to reduce labor costs but is instead related to improving product and service quality. Our findings are consistent with the notion that robots reduce variance in production processes, diminishing the need for managers to monitor worker activities to ensure production quality. As additional evidence, we also find that robot investments predict improved performance measurement and increased adoption of incentive pay based on individual employee performance. With respect to changes in skill composition within the organization, robots predict decreases in employment for middle-skilled workers but increases in employment for low- and high-skilled workers. We also find that robots predict not only changes in employment but also corresponding adaptations in organizational structure. Robot investments are associated with both centralization and decentralization of decision-making authority depending on the task, but decision rights in either case are reassigned away from the managerial level of the hierarchy. Overall, our results suggest that robots have distinct and profound effects on employment and organizations that require fundamental changes in firm practices and organizational design. This paper was accepted by Lamar Pierce, organizations.